Rewe Austria has been working on a new project for two years, and the time has finally arrived for them to start selling wine in plastic bottles. The new PET wine bottle is described as extremely light, aesthetic, handy, and unbreakable by Herbert Toifl, the managing director of the Wegenstein winery, which is a Rewe Group own brand. Around 600 predominantly Austrian winemakers supply this brand.
Christoph Fingerlos, responsible quality manager at the Wegenstein winery, explains that the energy crisis was the starting point for considering this innovation. The production of conventional glass bottles requires gas, so they needed to find an alternative. After testing if it was possible to fill a PET bottle with alcohol, they collaborated with a Vorarlberg packaging specialist to make it feasible.
The new wine bottle has several advantages, including significantly lower CO2 emissions than glass bottles, reduced transport costs due to the lighter weight, and recyclability. The first variety available in PET bottles is the “Heuriger 2023,” priced at 2.99 euros per bottle and sold at various grocery stores. By January 2025, these bottles will also be included in the disposable deposit system for recycling.
According to Toifl, the shelf life of the wine in these PET bottles is a maximum of two years